Regular Joes Podcast

After last week’s overwhelmingly positive appraisal of Star Trek Strange New Worlds season two it was perhaps inevitable that the most ambitious, or was it, misguided? episode of the year might not be received as well. Fans are divided on the first ever Trek musical episode, Sub-Space Rhapsody, and not surprisingly, so are the Regular Joes. With Brian Mix filling the fourth seat It’s a split decision. Dave recounts taking in an event that everyone should have on their to-do list. Then Tod poses a question that has been stuck in his frontal lobe since Secret Invasion concluded. “Did Avengers Endgame break the Marvel Cinematic Universe?”  There’s also the usual Random Topics and a round of What’s Into the Box. Thanks for Listening!

The Disney+ Marvel series have been hit or miss. When they are good (WandaVision) they use their extended runtime to experiment with concepts and formats, expanding and developing characters in ways impossible within the limits of a film. When they are bad (Falcon and the Winter Soldier) they flail about wasting time while underutilizing established characters. Secret Invasion the most recent MCU series, manages to kill two characters, completely discredit another, and dismiss any notion that its protagonist, Nick Fury, is in any way effectual, or even interesting. Meanwhile in the distant future Star Trek Strange New Worlds continues to push the boundaries of space, time, format and genre proving that, 50 plus years down the line, there are still places to boldly go. These also the usual Random Topics and a new segment Dave came up with to test his own generalizations. Thanks for Listening!

With the ongoing Writer’s Guild of America strike expanding to encompass the Screen Actors Guild this year’s SanDiego Comic Con was like no other. Who better to navigate the celebrity barren landscape than our man Brian Mix, veteran of more than 30 previous SDCCs. Find out what cool stuff he actually did see as he explored this strange new reality. Speaking of strange and new, for the benefit of road warrior Brian, and other folks with clearly misplaced priorities, there’s also some spoiler free response to the Star Trek Strange New Worlds / Lower decks crossover released early during Comic Con. And of course, there’s the usual the Random Topics and a round of What’s in the Box. Thanks for listening!

This week the seventh Mission Impossible film finally reached theaters, proving that, a quarter century on, this franchise and Tom Cruise can’t be stopped. If you were a fan of this series, as Dave believes everyone should be, Mission impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I is everything you’ve been waiting for. You get to see Tom run, a lot, as well as survive all manner of death defying stunts that would easy kill any other 60 -year-old man. But this is Tom Cruise, so things like gravity and age really don’t factor in. Also, this time around he has Hayley Atwell along for the ride … it really doesn’t get better than that. There’s also the usual, Random Topics and a Hot Toy dominated round of What’s in the Box. Thanks for listening!

A farm boy dreams of a life of adventure and finds his place in a Galaxy Far, Far Away. We could be talking about Luke SkyWalker, but it is actually this week’s guest Micheal McMaster, droid builder extraordinaire. You may not know his name but you have seen his work in the recent Star Wars Films and series on Disney+. Micheal sits down with the Regular Joes and mutual friend Brian Mix to talk about his journey, his robots, and what it takes to bring animated characters like Pixar’s WALL-E, and Chopper from Rebels, to real life. With Mouse Droids, Astromechs, even a full scale probe droid, for Micheal no project is too big or too small. In a special What’s on My Workbench segment he shares his progress on one his recent efforts, easily the most well known robot in sci-fi history. Thanks for listening!

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is in theaters. The artifact at the center of this James Mangold directed sequel teases the possibility of rewriting history, which is not much different than than goal of this fifth and final Indy film. After the much panned Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) will audiences warm up to this second, or arguably, third pass at closing out the Indy saga? Can the old formula of frantic street chases, Nazi punches, and near death escapes that made Raiders of the Lost Ark the greatest adventure film ever, bring it home one last time? As always the odds are against him, but Indy is, well, Indy. So the Regular Joes will be there cheering him on. Da, da, dum da, da, da, dum... Thanks for listening!

After what seems an interminable wait (actually 11 months and 14 days) Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season two has launched on Paramount +. Pike, Spock, Number One, and the whole crew are back in the much lauded prelude to the original series. The Regular Joes give their thoughts on the first few episodes as the settle in for a sophomore season that promises more Trek that actually feels like Trek. Next the Joes close out their epic turn at ranking nearly half a decade of super hero this week covering the range from Logan to The Flash, including some the highest highs and lowest lows of the Marvel and DC cinematic Universes. All this plus the usual Random Topics, a round of what’s in the box and some eleventh hour anxiety over Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Thanks for Listening!

It’s been a long time coming but DC’s The Flash is finally in theaters. A fact which has not seemed to motivate a large portion of the movie going public. While the scarlet speedster’s solo (In name only) outing is failing at the box office, and with critics, it has been well received by viewers, like out hosts, who have actually seen it. Find out why the Regular Joes place this movie in the top tier of DC films. Note: there will be SPOILERS, but most of the bigger reveals are already in the wild. Speaking of rankings, the Joes also continue with the next third of their comprehensive superhero film review, this time covering the glory days of the early MCU, and a few of DC’s worst offerings. “Martha!” And, of course, there’s also the usual Random Topics. Thanks for listening!

After a two week hiatus the Regular Joe’s are back. Dave left the country, but thanks to extradition treaties he’s back behind the mic to tell us all about his exploits. After the hosts get caught up they dive into part 1 of their epic rating rundown of all the DC/Marvel (mostly) Superhero films since 1978. There are quite a few surprises, as well as several films you haven’t thought of in years...and a few others you wish you could forget, but with this week’s long awaited release of The Flash, it seemed like a good time to get caught up on the benchmarks. There’s also the usual Random Topics around What’s in the box. Thanks for listening!

OK, so here’s the elevator pitch. We cast two really attractive people, one man, one woman. We establish a little chemistry, then we send them on a nonstop cycle of high-speed chases and near death experiences. There’s a certain amount of spy stuff. Lots of people shooting at them. Various bad guys with vague foreign accents. They should be after something? Let’s make it a high tech briefcase thingie. We could be talking about Amazon‘s streaming series, Citadel, or Apple+ made for streaming film Ghosted. One approaches things humorously, the other try to play it straight. This week the Regular Joe’s check out both and give you their thoughts. Hint: Any time you cast Ana de Armas you get bonus points. In other news, Barry and Dave let you in on their recent adventures while Tod pretty much just stayed home and worked. There’s also a Random Topics and What’s in the Box. Thanks for listening!

If you were wondering how you celebrate 10 years of podcasting, the answer is by doing pretty much what you’ve been doing for the previous decade. This week The Regular Joe’s Podcast hits the 10 year mark, and we commemorate this milestone by getting the whole gang together and revisiting one of our earliest themes, “Tools of the Trade.” As long time listeners will know, in the early days of the podcast the Joes covered a lot of lists. This time around they run down, or perhaps, update, all their favorite stuff from the genres, they love. Cars, planes, spacecraft, robots, the inevitable green girls and a few wild cards. Some choices will be surprising, some, not so much. Listeners are are invited to play along and even let them know what they might have missed. Thanks for listening, and listening, and listening …

In the summer of 2014 James Gunn transformed Guardians of the Galaxy from a largely unknown, but highly regarded, Marvel comic to a box office blockbuster. For nine years we have followed the exploits of Star-Lord, Gomora, Drax, Rocket, and Groot along with others they picked up along the way. As the much delayed, and purportedly final, entry in the Guardians saga hits theaters the Joes weigh in on the newest Marvel film, and the franchise as a whole. Are we really ready to say goodbye to these characters? SPOILER not really. Seriously people, if this one doesn’t break your heart just a little bit, you might not have one. And, yes there’s also the usual Random Topics. I am Groot!

This week the Regular Joe’s are joined once again by Tom Spina of Regal Robot, and Tom Spina designs. After a curiously lengthy discussion about eating habits, Tom fills the Joes in on some of his newer projects. While most folks likely associate Regal Robot with meticulously crafted Star Wars prop replicas and very cool deco items, Tom and his dedicated group of artisans have recently moved into the world of Indiana Jones. As die hard Indy fans are all about the gear and the artifacts we can look forward to some exciting stuff. It’s a rare opportunity to pull back the curtain on the development and creation process behind the amazing replicas that he produces. And of course, there’s also Random topics. Thanks for Listening!

After ten weeks of Star Trek: Picard and eight of Star Wars: The Mandolorian you might think the Regular Joes would have run out of things to say. Actually, if you’ve been listening for any length of time, you wouldn’t suspect that in the least. This week, the Joes close the book on these two series as Picard delivers its finale and the Mandalorian wraps its third season.  Because the regular hosts possess little or no objectivity when it comes to these two franchises, they sought out a neutral, fourth party to counterbalance their views with a reasoned and unbiased perspective. Unfortunately, that person wasn’t available so they called in Brian Mix. There's also the usual Random Topics and a Round of Joe’s Choice, which is a lot like What’s in the Box with stuff that has been around longer.  Thanks for listening!

It seems like the view from a parallel universe. This season actually saw a few episodes of Star Wars: The Mandalorian that were panned by critics and fans. Has some of the shine come off the Beskar armor that previously made Mando the only blaster proof property in the Star Wars universe? Has Mando jumped the Krayt Dragon? And perhaps most importantly, will the bottom fall out of the market for Grogu merchandise? Meanwhile, Paramount’s Star Trek: Picard has somehow managed to deliver the series Trek fans have been waiting three seasons to see. It’s fun, it’s nostalgic, and it actually feels like Star Trek. All of which is a bit weird, because in previous seasons, Picard has not gone there before. Only one week remains for both of these series, while one needs to score in the closing round, the other simply needs to run out the clock and not drop the ball. While we wait the Joe’s break it down with in depth analysis. Geez, what’s with the sports metaphors? It’s like someone started watching Ted Lasso. There’s

474: Coming Distractions In last week’s episode the Joe’s caught up on trailers for upcoming films and shows. In the week since Star Wars Celebration 2023 happened and there is a whole lot more news on upcoming stuff. In recent years there have been a lot of soft announcements on who’s going to direct a Star Wars Film … maybe … someday. But it now seems like there actually are three Star Wars films in the “going to happen” category. Stay tuned. The final trailer for Indiana Jones, and the Dial of Destiny is out and it looks like they’re going to have to try really hard to make this a bad movie. We will see. Also, it’s time to talk John Wick: Chapter 4. They gave you time to see it, but now it’s time to charge ahead like a man in a bullet proof suit. There will be SPOILERS. For instance, he shoots people. He shoots a lot of people. OK, now that’s out there. Also, there’s another dog. There’s also the usual, Random Topics and a round of What’s in the Box where Dave finally lets on what he purchased from the Pro

This week the Regular Joes dive into a recent batch of trailers, including Secret Invasion on Disney+ … promising, Blue Beatle from DC … interesting, Citadel … on Amazon Prime … intriguing, as well as a new Guardians Volume lll spot … more Rocket anxiety inducing. Along the way they make an extended trip down a Kevin Costner themed Rabbit hole. Bet you didn’t see that coming. There’s also What’s in the Box and the usual round of Random Topics. Thanks for listening!

Just in case you were getting tired of the Regular Joe’s weekly updates of back to back Mandalorian and Star Trek: Picard episodes they decided to switch things up a bit. This Week they bring in remote correspondence Derryl DePriest and Sean Huxter who report on last weekend’s Toylanta … toy show … in Atlanta, giving the lowdown from their respective roles as vendor, presenter, and of course, collectors. After that, you get the usual update of back to back Mandalorian and Star Trek: Picard. In the Joe’s defense, when has there ever been awesome Star Trek and Star Wars happening simultaneously? It’s like seeing a mermaid ride a unicorn. You just Gotta talk about it. There’s also a bonus sized What’s in the Box and the usual Random Topics. Thanks for listening!

This week’s show is that semi-regular/randomly occurring, episode with no particular theme or plan. Think of it as a bonus length installment of Random Topics, with a check in on The Mandalorian (ok, that was … odd) and Star Trek: Picard (are we tired of saying, better than ever?) They also devote slightly more attention to Shazam Fury of the Gods than actual audiences did. And, in other news, Tod finally gets “roped in” to bingeing a Apple + series he was avoiding simply because everyone told him to watch. There’s also What’s in the Box … and that’s about it. Next week they will just type their list of topics into ChatGPT and see if you notice. Thanks for listening!

A weary and jaded loaner is given the task of delivering an orphan to an uncertain fate. Through various trials and ordeals he becomes both a father figure and protector putting the welfare of the child above all else. Yeah … Pedro Pascal is going to have to try harder not to get typecast. This week the Regular Joes take a last look at the last episode of The Last of Us, a show that, despite a decade of human biological apocalypse scenario content, proves it’s still possible to tell a compelling story in that genre. And pull in some serious audience numbers as well. Over on Disney Plus The Mandalorian delivers a great second Episode to its third season … prompting Tod and Dave to spend money. While on Paramount Plus, Star Trek Picard continues to give Treks fan a lot more of what they have been looking for. As you have come to expect, the Joes share their thoughts on all of the above. And, of course, there’s also the usual Random Topics and a round of What’s in the Box. Thanks for Listening!